Using Electronic Meeting Technology to Support Economic Policy Development in New Zealand: Short-Term Results

Abstract:This paper describes an application of group support technology to a series of economic policy-making meetings. The meetings were part of a national study aiming to upgrade New Zealand’s competitive position in global markets. The aim of the research is to determine if electronic meeting technology could support an economic development process where participants came from a variety of backgrounds (e.g., business competitors, different ethnic groups) and where meeting urgency and efficiency were of prime importance. A multiple case approach was adopted. The meetings were organized and facilitated by the coordinator of the national study. Research data were gathered by observing the meetings, by questionnaires administered to participants, and by interviews with the coordinator and his staff. Analysis of these data indicates that participants felt that the meetings were both very effective and efficient. Implications for using group support technology for economic policy development are discussed.Key Words and Phrases: economic developmentelectronic meeting systemsgroup support methodologyinnovation Additional informationNotes on contributorsJim SheffieldJim Sheffield is Senior Lecturer in Infonnation Systems at the University of Auckland. He received his Ph.D. in MIS from the University of Arizona. He teaches management of information systems in the M.B.A. program and database systems in the MIS and computer science programs. His research interests are in electronic meeting systems, particularly in facilitation techniques, and the impact of communication media on negotiation tasks.R. Brent GallupeR. Brent Gallupe is an Associate Professor in the School of Business at Queen’s University at Kingston, Canada. His research interests include group support systems, end-user computing, and the evaluation of information systems. His work has been published in Management Science, MIS Quarterly, Academy of Management Journal, and Journal of Applied Psychology.

• 저널Journal of Management Information Systems · 10(3) · 97–116
• 토픽Team Dynamics and Performance · Social Psychology
• DOI10.1080/07421222.1993.11518012
• 저자Jim Sheffield, R. Brent Gallupe